1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a shoe fixing device applied to a pedal of a bicycle, or that particularly suitable to a pedal of a mountain bike.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Nowadays, various kinds of the shoe fixing device used on a bicycle pedal fixing the shoe fixing device to the shoe without using toe clips have been proposed and practiced. Apparently, these conventional shoe fixing devices are applied to use on the pedals of the road race bicycles and the track race bicycles. Every shoe fixing device mentioned above has an engagement member, engaging with a front and rear portions and a left and right portions of the cleat attached to the shoe bottom so as to protrude from the bottom, and holding the shoe in place.
It is apparent from a purpose of it that the mountain bike is apt to be shouldered on the user when the mountain bike is ridden on mountainous roads and the rider walks with the bike on his or her shoulder. The conventional shoes provided with the cleats protruding from the shoe bottoms are not suitable to walk along such mountaneous or steep roads. In other words, it is difficult to smoothly walk along such roads with the conventional shoes mentioned above, so that it is necessary to use shoes having small cleats not protruding from the shoe bottoms. The shoe provided with such a small cleat necessitates a particular shoe fixing device employed to the bicycle pedal, which device is suitable to the small cleat.
One of the shoe fixing device suitable to the pedal of the mountain bike is disclosed in Japan Patent Application Laid-open Heisei 3 (1991) No. 157285. According to the invention disclosed in the Japan Patent Application above, the conventional shoe fixing device adapted to use on the mountain bike pedal has engagement members so attached to a front portion and a rear portion of the pedal footboard or tread as to engage with the front face and the rear face of the cleat. These engagement members are rotatably attached to a shaft in parallel to a pedal shaft and urged toward their engagement direction by means of springs.
It is noted that assembling and adjusting the engagement members of the pedal footboard are difficult and troublesome, since these members have springs each installed on them.